In this latest series, I will be going through all the countries I’ve travelled to on my mission to visit every single country in the world. In this article, we will be covering country #61: United Kingdom. If you haven’t gotten a chance already, read this story first to find out why I’m trying to visit all 193 UN-recognized countries.
VIDEO – Country #61: United Kingdom
Blog post on the United Kingdom
- 6 Touristy Areas I Visited in London
- Why Edinburgh Scotland is One of My Favourite City in Europe
- My Complete Finland, England, and Scotland Spending Breakdown
- Exploring Northern Scotland – Ballater, Braemar Castle, and Muir of Dinnet
London
The first part of my trip to the United Kingdom is visiting my friend Rebecca who I met while doing volunteer work in Guatape, Colombia. She was kind enough to host me at her place and got me an inflatable mattress to sleep on the floor in her apartment with many roommates.
The British Museum
On my first day exploring the United Kingdom, my first destination is the British Museum. It’s free to enter which helps since travelling in the UK is very expensive.
The main tourist attraction here is the Rosetta Stone which helped translate the Egyptian Hieroglyphics. The British Museum is neat but I felt overwhelmed after awhile from the sheer number of tourists.
City sightseeing
After feeling exhausted exploring the British Museum, I ventured out and went to the other big touristy destinations in the United Kingdom. I got a chance to see Big Ben and Buckingham Palace.
Big Ben was cool but Buckingham Palace is pretty lame. If they weren’t so close together, it’s probably not worth checking the palace out.
Not too long after, Rebecca got off work and she took me to get some bagel sandwiches in Bricklane. They were alright, but she seemed to love them.
Our final destination was checking out the bridges in London before calling it a day.
Natural History Museum
On one of the days, I checked out the Natural History Museum. This has got to be my favourite part of visiting London. I love anything science and this place is my kind of place.
I loved learning about the world’s natural formations. They even had an earthquake simulation of Japan which was cool.
I laughed my ass off when I went to the dinosaur section and this African kid started crying when he saw the giant T-Rex. It got even funnier when the mom kept insisting that he look at the T-Rex. The kid proceeded to cry even harder and it was just the funniest moment I saw in this museum. Good times.
Scotland
After a few days, I bid my friend Rebecca goodbye as I took a plane going to Edinburgh Scotland. Here, I would be visiting my friend Alice who lives on a farm near Aberdeen. I befriended Alice while doing volunteer work teaching English in Poland.
After taking landing, I took the metro to Edinburgh where I would be sightseeing during the day before meeting up with Alice. Upon arriving in the city centre, my eyes couldn’t believe the beauty of Edinburgh. It’s got to be the most beautiful city I have ever seen while travelling in Europe.
Edinburgh
The first place I visited in Edinburgh was the Edinburgh castle. This place is huge and the lineups are freakishly long. I’d say I still enjoyed visiting that place and I do think it’s a worthwhile spot.
I didn’t know this but there’s actually some sort of festival happening here during this time. I walked the famous Royal Mile and had a blast.
After reaching the end of the Royal Mile, I called it a day and headed for the bus station. From there, I would be catching a bus that would take me to Aberdeen.
Aberdeen
Upon arriving in Aberdeen, I waited a bit and eventually, Alice’s younger brother came to pick me up. Not too long after, Alice arrived and it was a pleasant reunion.
We drove towards their farm where I would be spending the next few days living the local life.
Farm life
Alice’s dad showed me how they sheered the sheep’s wool in the morning. He also took me to the place where they sold their sheep.
Next, her brother showed me around their sheep farm as he drove like a maniac. The dog seems to enjoy the ride as he was smiling the entire time.
Since we’re doing some sort of cultural exchange, I cooked them a Filipino dish called Sinigang. Alice’s mom thought it tasted weird but Alice, her dad, and her brother loved it.
Scotland road trip
I did two road trips during my time here. The first one was with Alice’s mom when she showed me a beach that has a lot of dolphins. I don’t remember much from that day other than it was really cold on that beach.
Muir of Dinnet
On my last day in Scotland, Alice and her dad took me on a road trip. Our first stop was to go hiking in the Muir of Dinnet.
Braemar Castle
Next, we checked out an old castle called Braemar Castle where apparently, the book Treasure Island was written. We did the audio tour here which was neat learning who lived here over the years.
Ballater
Our last stop is a town called Ballater where we had some delicious British tea and cake. After an enjoyable time in Scotland, it was time to go. Alice and her dad dropped me off at the airport as I got ready to fly to my next destination.
Conclusion
I loved my time in Scotland. It’s my favourite part of the UK. The only thing I missed in the London area is probably Stonehenge; otherwise, I’d prefer to visit other parts of the country.
Near the top of my list when I return is definitely the Isle of Skye. I’d also love to visit the Dark Hedges and Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland.
The UK is a fun country to visit, especially once you leave the London area.
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